Any cigar smokers?

I havnt tried the series v yet. I've tried the O and G. Both are fantastic cigars.
Do you know what Hoya you had? I've got a few excaliburs in my box now and they are amazing.

Davidoff Special R is my current fav... along with the occasional La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra when I want a cheap smoke..

Does anyone have any experience with converting a room to a smoking room? I'm tired of being forced to go outdoors all the time.. I guess I could just google.

Wife brought some real Cohibas back from Cuba for me. Well, she discovered they had somehow entered her luggage once she was back in the U.S. I can't say it was intentional. And we plan on burning them, so any TSA employees reading this need not be alarmed. Or about the rum that was with them that will probably accompany the cigars while we burn them.

TheGameguru wrote:

Davidoff Special R is my current fav... along with the occasional La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra when I want a cheap smoke..

Does anyone have any experience with converting a room to a smoking room? I'm tired of being forced to go outdoors all the time.. I guess I could just google.

A friend of mine built one in his basement.
Stick in a big CFM fan venting outside with double the amount of air coming back in (just a big vent) to return and it should work. I don't remember how big his fan was but it was just short of a furnace fan.

He can't have any more than a couple of smokers in it though, it can't keep up. The fan can be noisy too.

Here
http://www.ryandeyer.com/cigar-room/...

from the above link and further to what I said above

I ran a completely new fresh air intake into just the cigar room. The main reason is that standard 4″ round fresh air intakes simply weren’t large enough for my application. Remember, you have to be able to replenish as much air as you exhaust. I choose to do 8″ round ducting for the fresh air intake to ensure enough air could be brought into the room.

sounds expensive.... its low on the priority list in my house hunting next year... I should just move to San Diego.. where its never cold.

I've never smoked a cigar in my life and have absolutely no plans to ever, but I enjoy reading about it. Carry on.

groan wrote:

I havnt tried the series v yet. I've tried the O and G. Both are fantastic cigars.
Do you know what Hoya you had? I've got a few excaliburs in my box now and they are amazing.

I love the Excalibur but this one was a Reposado, which was just great. The V Series is all I've ever tried from Oliva. I'm about to make a run to the cigar shop tomorrow to use a Groupon, maybe I'll seek the O and G.

Here's a question: what do y'all do by way of storage?

I'm looking around for a cheap desktop humidor. Doesn't have to be big since I don't typically keep a big collection of stoges around at any given time, but since I live in the godforsaken desert, it does have to be effective.

Any suggestions?

got mine from Amazon

I got the simple one, as its tucked away in a corner where it isn't very visible. Simple, Cheap, and does the job well enough.

hbi2k wrote:

Any suggestions?

Yeah, like Lucky, I just have a plain box (his is fancier, actually) from the local cigar shop that has that round sponge you top off once a month or so. I'm still expecting to invest in something much nicer for a birthday or Christmas, but so far I tend to smoke my good cigars right away, and don't worry too much about the bulk ones sitting in the box. And I didn't end up getting so heavy into it that I felt I needed a coolderdor with electronic humidifier, cedar planks, etc. My collection is pretty small.

Living in a desert, you may want an actual digital humidifier. This is one example you see a lot, although it's pricey.

hbi2k wrote:

Here's a question: what do y'all do by way of storage?

I'm looking around for a cheap desktop humidor. Doesn't have to be big since I don't typically keep a big collection of stoges around at any given time, but since I live in the godforsaken desert, it does have to be effective.

Any suggestions?

Depends on what you mean by just a few at a time. Cigar Caddy, they are made by Otterbox are inexpensive and nice. You can get 5, 10, 15, 40 cigar boxes. Prices range from 10-45 bucks They float, are water proof.

For storage, not aging, I also like these acryllic humidors
http://www.amazon.com/Acrylic-Cigar-...
A little secret, it is a kitchen jar. If you get a hydrogemeter and a humidifying device, you can use what is in your kitchen. A locking jar is 10 bucks, you can get a gel humidifier for about 5.

That is not to say a good cedar box is pointless. Cedar naturally repels insects, mold. As your cigars age, they will impart a light flavor. You also need to know what you are buying. One that does not leak, and you need to prep and season the box first, hydrate the wood, you need to be sure you are not using hard water, or a low grade glycol solution.

I have been please with cheaphumidors in the past as well.

I have two of these - http://www.cheaphumidors.com/p_small...

I've never needed anything else. Only $11 bucks more than a big kitchen jar, so might as well. Although I find it holds on the lower end of its capacity range. I don't think I've ever tried to stuff more than 30 in at once. I use a gel humidifier, although I notice during the winter when it's dry in my apartment I have to be diligent about keeping it charged. The box has a good seal but it takes a little work to keep it at 70% humidity when we have our fireplace running all day.

Can anyone recommend some good cigars in the petite corona size? I need some good ones to smoke at work that I can burn through a little quicker than a robusto.

I do enjoy a good candela cigar, but it's become really hard to find them in the last several years.

I have been underwhelmed with minaturized versions from Romeo y Julietta, Macanido, especially those that come in tins-dry, acrid, etc.

I may suggest finding a cigarillo or buccaneer that you like. Bonus is pretending you are the Man with No Name.

KingGorilla wrote:

I have been underwhelmed with minaturized versions from Romeo y Julietta, Macanido, especially those that come in tins-dry, acrid, etc.

I may suggest finding a cigarillo or buccaneer that you like. Bonus is pretending you are the Man with No Name.

Maybe that's the ticket. I don't usually smoke smaller cigars, but I had a good experience with the Rocky Patel 1999 in the petite corona size. I bought it individually from a cigar shop but, if I remember correctly, it was presented in a box at the cigar shop instead of a tin. It did sit in my humidor for probably a month or two before I smoked it.

You're right, though - cigarillos are probably the better option. Seems like there's a lot more variety there than trying to go for the smaller cigar sizes, too.

i actually like the tins of Macanudos. Slightly larger than a cigarette. Great for a quick smoke. Smaller than a petit carona, though.

I ended up going with some short belicosos and other short or half length sticks with larger ring size. Never really tried that before so I'll have to see how it goes. Got some pretty good sticks, including a Partagas, a Macanudo maduro, and a Nub with the Connecticut shade wrapper. I forgot about Nubs, been wanting to try one for a while.

IMAGE(http://static.desktopnexus.com/thumbnails/628836-bigthumbnail.jpg)

I have been absolutely falling in love with the latest breed of flavored cigars. Considering I live 2 miles from a JR Cigar, I have been able to experiment a bit more. It is nice getting lowest possible price just down the road.

Having sampled the Tatiana, CAO, and now Tabak (Drew Estate) varieties, I will admit that they all taste great. My Fiancee even says they smell nice. Tatiana and CAO make full size cigars as well as cigarillos. But I think that the Tabak is above and beyond best. I find the Tatiana's tend to be packed a bit loose so you may get a filler explosion in your mouth. The CAO are good value for money, as you expect from CAO. But I think Drew Estate has more of a nack for flavored cigars. Given that I am really not a fan of Acid, my love for the coffee infused cigars intrigued me.

IMAGE(http://www.cubancrafters.com/images/cigars/cc/TABAK-ESPECIAL-TORO-ONLINE-CIGARS.jpg)

Hmm, I've never explored the flavored cigars. Teh guys I smoke with are kinda assaholic when it comes to them.
I believe i'd get my a$$ kicked for doing something like that.

I admit I've been a bit of a snob, laughing and pointing at flavored cigar smokers. I should try one some day. Maybe when I go to Fla in Feb.

If I had a JR's around the corner that would be amazing. Sadly Canadian cigars are so massively taxed it's prohibitive to buy them here. We always wait till someone is travelling to the US then stock up.

I picked up some Ashton's the other day.. really enjoying them.. Davidoff cheaper brand.. Found out my new neighbor is a huge cigar guy... sadly he is also banished to the outside in his home as well.... I kinda wish I didnt scrap the idea for a dedicated smoking room.. maybe next house.

I've got to echo KG's adoration of the Tabak line. By far the tastiest thing I've smoked thus far, and I get far less odor-related grief from the missus after one of those versus a standard cigar.

Like groan said, it is an area of snobbishness and upturned noses. I would think swisher sweets or phillies from the gas station or dry as hell Capones. And I have never been a big fan of Acid or Sailor Jack's.

But I am not getting a sense that 1 this is sweetener to cover up cut rate leaf nor 2 that they are using some artificial tasting or "central theme of sweet" like I have gotten from some Hookah tobaccos that taste you get from no brand generic candy or how cough syrup is sweetened.

For me it is nice for after dinner. They are mild-medium bodied with a good espresso taste. It nicely fits in as an after meal coffee but without the problem of wiring me up for bed.

IMAGE(http://cdn.jrcigars.com/jr/images/items/acc/3HOLD.jpg)

Got my new humidor in. My fiancee, to be wife in 3 months, is not a big fan of smelling a lot of what I smoke. But she loves the way this humidor looks. It is sitting on the ledge next to her Scentsy warmer.

IMAGE(http://www.buysafecandles.com/full/candle-warmer/Magellan-Scentsy-Warmer.jpg)

And after we get back from our honey-moon we will be getting a large wall map to mark the places we travel together. And we also have our engagement tags.

IMAGE(https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/s720x720/537858_10100747232332428_1070677541_n.jpg)

I did not fully appreciate how large this thing is though. It is about the size of an unabridged Oxford English Dictionary.

So I guess pro-tip would be find a humidor that suits your home's motif. This one is certainly something we are happy to leave right in the open. And while I scoff at people who get TV chests designed to hide the TV (As if any educated person could be base enough to do so), I am not particularly keen to have a glass top humidor, or a smaller desktop humidor that just screams that I am a smoker. This little dandy looks like a small chest.

Travelling to Disney on the 31st.
Last week I get an email from Cigar Aficionado telling me about the CA Cigar of the year,
Flor de las Antillas Toro. A Nicaraguan that rates 96. WOW.
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/cigar...

Of course Holts, my preferred place to order from these days, was sold out. I called Jackie at thier Customer Service and she told me that she placed on my order a reminder to tell her when they come in to set a box aside for me.

Well Jackie at Holts (she rocks!) emailed today to tell me she has one on hold so I called her again and placed my whole order.

IMAGE(https://dl.dropbox.com/u/7779045/cigars.png)

the "top cigars of the year" pack includes this for $100.
4 Alec Bradley Prensado Churchill
4 La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor Belicoso
4 Padron Anniversary 1964 Exclusivo (M)
4 Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary Torpedo

I am sooo looking forward to trying that cigar. It's going to be glorious.
IMAGE(http://images.cigaraficionado.com/cao/Top25/2012/antillascigar-1.jpg)

Please let us know. That is on my short list to buy. Along with the Trinidad Paradox, and La Gloria Serie N.

Personal note, a friend of my wife is looking at investing in coffee in Honduras, and I might score some fine duty free goods when he comes back. Mini Pen Con attendees may reap the benefits. Or at least I might bring another bag to be rid of to make room in my humidor.

I came into possession of a humidor last month along with a small sample of cigars. Since then, I've been doing some reading and dealing with issues relating to it not working properly (cigar mold). I finally took the last few smokes out of it and have decided to start over from the beginning by re-seasoning the humidor, re-calibrating the hygrometer, and replacing the humidifiers.

When I stopped in the local cigar shop, the owner said the only way for a humidor to work properly is to keep it half filled at all times. This didn't make sense to me because what I've read lead me to believe placing gel beads are supposed to regulate the humidity.

Is what he was saying true or was he feeding me a line so I'd stock up?

sr_malo wrote:

When I stopped in the local cigar shop, the owner said the only way for a humidor to work properly is to keep it half filled at all times. This didn't make sense to me because what I've read lead me to believe placing gel beads are supposed to regulate the humidity.

I think what he means is that the average humidor is designed with the assumption that it won't be empty, nor will it be packed full. So when they design the humidification system for it, or when they suggest putting in gels or beads, they are assuming that some of the humidity is going to be provided by the cigars themselves.

In other words, if you just have a couple sticks in an average box, you might want to over-humidify a bit. Or get an electronic device that knows exactly what the numbers are and can adjust for them. I've never used gels or beads so I can't say if they "know" what to do.

A few things.

If you get mold, you more or less need to toss any contaminated cigars at least. If the mold is on the humidifier itself, you want to get a new humidifier, and be damn careful with the stogies in there (smoking moldy stuff can get you sick).

1. Don't always use tap water or bottled water to recharge your humidifier even the gel beads. Every 2-3 charge should be with propylene glycol solution (at least every 6 months). I lost a sponge humidifier this way, but was able to find it soon, save the cigars, and replace it. Most pipe tobacco is tossed in a little propylene glycol in packaging to inhibit mold and to keep it moist.
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/webfe...

2. You could upgrade your humidification device. The system from Cigarmony is unique in that it is mold free, and only requires tap water or bottled water. They have an added bonus of providing humidifiers that will reach a max 65% relative humidity, below the threshold for most molds.

3. Mold on the cedar is rare, cedar naturally repels molds. But if the mold has penetrated the wood, you need a new humidor. You could try redrying it, but mold spores can lay dormant when dried.

4. Actually keeping your humidor under stocked will make the humidity drop not over saturate. Your sticks will dry out eventually(probably months of being in an under stocked humidor).

Now then, do not mistake the magical white powder on your cigars as mold, this is cigar bloom. When cigars age, some of the oils begin to get into the wrapper and at the tip. These will be white-silver, and if you shine a light on it it will glitter a bit.

In the box you might also see an accumulation of a fine white powder, this is a mineral deposit left from the evaporating water. Salts, metals, etc. in your water will stay in the box and accumulate.

These last 2 things are good, the former means your cigars are aging properly. The latter is just a fact of water evaporation, and you can shake out the powder if it gets too much.

And if you are really, really, really concerned I can tell you how to take a sample of your mold and a lab with cheap rates.

The mold was on a couple of cigars but the humidor seems to be OK. I tossed the damaged cigars; out of the ten sticks in the humidor, the only ones affected were the four R. Patels which had developed a little mold at the foot. I showed them to the tobacconist who said the problem was very slight and the sticks could possibly be "salvaged" but, since I didn't have a way to cut them effectively, I tossed them anyway. I had only used distilled water with it.

The Cigarmony setup is exactly what I'm planning to buy. Thanks for the link KingGorilla.

Are there any particular vendors I should use or avoid? I'm interested in how well they ship their product. Right now, it won't be an issue, but come Summer it could be since I live in the desert.

For online, I have not had problems with Thompson Cigar or JR cigar. My only Female Doggo was about a cigar manufacturer making defective cigars, and I had to eat 35 bucks (budget cigars) from a purchase at Thompson.

Maybe do a citysearch, or a google search to see what tobacconists you have around. I think the Smoker's Outlets/Wild Bill's chain is quite over-priced to be your go to shop, and their selection is mediocre. But any port in a storm. They do often have fairly good bulk or close out deals. I am fortunate to live in a very cigar friendly area. I live right down the street from JR Cigars Detroit.

Warning, stay away from "Factory Over-Run deals" it is a crap shoot.

With some luck, it will be a place with cigar events (often with deals or freebies). Alec Bradley had an event near me, I got 2 free sticks out of it. And often contests. JR Detroit will also exchange or refund if anything I buy becomes plugged-even a few months later.